The present invention relates generally to a heald frame of a loom, which performs a shedding operation so as to form a shed by moving warp yarns in vertical direction determining a weave pattern, and specifically to a heald frame having healds that are made of a resin material.
Healds of a heald frame are supported by and between a pair of upper and lower carrier rods extending in parallel to each other. Each heald has formed therethrough at the opposite ends thereof holes through which the respective carrier rods are passed. The heald is slidably movable along the carrier rods. Efforts have been made for reducing the weight of healds so as to meet the recent requirements of high-speed loom operation, energy saving and noise reduction. For example, the weight reduction has been accomplished by changing the material of the heald from metal to resin.
Japanese Patent Application Publication H11-36154 discloses a heald frame with healds wherein the healds are made of a magnetic material and magnets are provided in upper and lower frame staves respectively with the N and S poles of the magnets located facing the front and rear sides of the heald frame. The opposite ends of each heald made of a magnetic material that are located adjacent to the magnets are magnetized by the magnets. The healds supported and arranged in a row by upper and lower carrier rods are separated away from each other by magnetic repulsion. Therefore, the healds supported by the carrier rods are prevented from contacting each other, so that they are arranged neatly in a row by the carrier rods.
However, healds made of a resin material and arranged in the above heald frame cannot be magnetized, so that any two adjacent healds in the heald frame cannot be separated.
The present invention is directed to providing a heald frame with healds made of a resin material wherein any two adjacent healds are separated by magnetic repulsion.